How to be a Geek Goddess

How to be a Geek Stereotype

January 6, 2009

By
Tina Gasperson

Even though this book is far too basic for anyone who wants to call herself a Geek Goddess either before or after reading it, How To Be a Geek Goddess is sometimes an entertaining read, if you can keep from throwing it against the wall.

How To Be a Geek Goddess says it is a book that contains practical advice about using computers with "smarts and style." Right off the bat it seems to be targeting Western society's stereotypical vision of a woman and her preferences. "Buying technology can be daunting," Wood writes. "You can't blindly trust the salespeople, the ads, the marketplace, or anyone from the home-audio department." Wood doesn't seem to have a problem asking readers to trust her though... wink wink.

In any case, the book begins with a foreword written by Christina's husband, Dan Tynan, who calls himself a "pompous ass about technology," and then goes on to insult himself further with all typical modern insults about the male of the species. "Not much has changed since man crawled out from the primordial ooze... back then it was rocks and bricks; today it's cell phones and TV remotes. We also like to puff up our chests..." He writes that women care more about function and aesthetics than acronyms and specs, which may be true for a certain segment of the population, but that segment could be and is both male and female.

After the foreword, Tynan, who is a tech journo himself, hands it off to his wife. Wood launches into a twelve chapter ride through technology techniques, skills, and must-have know-hows for all the cool gadgets and gear popular at the beginning of the 21st century. She talks about how to buy a computer, how to set it up once you get it home, how to find and install applications and get connected to the Internet. Wood even instructs Goddess-Newbs about how to shop online, set up a VOIP phone, and go wireless. Then comes the requisite chapters on Internet safety, keeping your kids safe, and advice on "groovy gear," social networking, and even online dating, or "hooking up" as Wood calls it, where she strays from technological advice to offering help to women looking to spice up their love lives. "Even though the ability to pen prose to make a girl's heart flutter is an admirable skill in any man - and especially in an online dating situation - don't believe everything you read," Wood writes. Really? Damn.